PLAS-MED is thus organised into three complementary and synergistic subprojects, which establishes five primary objectives:

  1. To study the effect of microplastics on the transfer and bioaccumulation of other pollutants.
  2. To study the toxic effects of microplastics on aquatic organisms using ecotoxicological and metabolomics approaches.
  3. To quantify the presence of microplastics and other contaminants in the Ebro Delta and the Mar Menor lagoon areas.
  4. To study the environmental risks of the presence of microplastics including their potential biomagnification through the food chain.
  5. To investigate the potential risk to human health, including effects from food preparation.

These objectives will be achieved through the application of advanced methodologies and techniques to characterise the behaviour, fate and effects of MPLs in realistic environmental conditions. As a fundamental premise, the experiments will be carried out faithfully reproducing the requirements of each aquatic system under consideration by the project.